Fashion that is evocative of sun, fun & life!

Tag Archives: Clothing

Young Bohémienne: Natalie Clifford Barney (1875-1972) at the age of 10 (painting by Carolus-Duran) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I meet so many women who are uncomfortable in their own skin; after all there is a fine line between demure and abashed. While one is a character trait the other is a result of one’s perception of self, usually a negative one. The last time I felt awkward and cringed in my own skin was in high school, in my attempt to be cool, I wore a tight-fitting cocktail dress. Black lace and a bright yellow bow was all it took to make me feel like a turkey on show! Thank God for my father, a man of principle and obviously taste, who forbade me to walk out of the house looking like the bride of Frankenstein. As any normal teenager, I rolled my eyes and protested, but secretly I was so happy that he made me change. My ego didn’t let me publicly admit my fashion faux pas but that day I learned a valuable lesson, never try to be someone else!

It’s one thing to be inspired and quite another to erase one’s own identity and absorb someone else’s persona. My inspiration by the likes of those gorgeous Bohemian style divas leads me to don flowing skirts, but it’s still me underneath the boho skirt. Just like my skin tone, which is brown, cream and uneven, my fashion sense isn’t defiantly anything but always comfortable.

Lace shirts with frayed denim shorts and gold jewellery – that’s me! Hair colour that changes more frequently than the weather courtesy global warming, fashion style that is constantly evolving, adapting, and always experimenting that’s who I am. What about you? Is your personality hiding in the closet or tucked away in the back of your wardrobe? Waiting in the sidelines for the approval of peers, fashion magazines, friends, family, the cat next door?

I just got chastised, by a plus size friend on the blogosphere. Apparently I don’t know what I am talking about. Only a ‘Fatshion’ blogger knows what its like and has the right to comment on plus size fashion. In case you are wondering (I know I was), fat is not used in a negative context meaning something to be shed or loathed but an acceptance of being real and perfectly normal.

Plus size shopping is hard; the concept of just waltzing in a mall and picking an outfit in your size is apparently unheard of. The entire fashion industry is tailored (literally) for size 18 and below. So what do you do when you are a size 24? The few brands that do cater to plus size fashion have limited styles and work from the standpoint that if you are a plus size you are definitely 9 feet tall. So what do you do when you are short and fat? Love vintage or retro or basically have a personal style? What about if you are plus size and pregnant? Try finding clothes that fit a plus size with an hour glass figure, apparently if you are that big you are not allowed to have a tiny waist!?

Also, you are penalised for seeking out plus size fashion by being charged exorbitant amounts, not mention the fact that the designs are inspired by what granny used to wear. Stylish shoes that fit are non-existent and there is a conception that plus size women don’t need hosiery??!!

What was I thinking when I wrote a post on how to be a plus size fashion diva? Did I think that plus size women have no sense of fashion and no sense of style? Except for the positive body image message, I apparently scored very low on all other counts. To that I say my humble apologies! It just hit home what an international conspiracy there is against curvy women.

To all the plus size women who overcome all these hurdles and still rock it, I salute you! You gals are true divas, your constant vigil for stylish outfits, your online scavenger hunts, your years of experimentation and dedication to fashion is truly inspiring!

I end with a comment that made me smile, “Offcourse we are in shape, round is a shape!”

At the cost of sounding repetitive, let me reiterate, real women come in real sizes. Don’t be a football to media or society; every woman is beautiful. I know a lot of extremely slender women who hate their bodies, many resort to breast augmentation and one friend even wears padded underwear to fill out her jeans. They feel no consolation when I tell them they have super model figures. The truth is women and men come in all shapes and sizes, and it has nothing to do with beauty. The media has created a hype of the perfect body, flawless wrinkle free skin, pencil slim body, extra long legs, a convex behind and an ample bosom. Show me one woman who actually has those dimensions and no Barbie doesn’t count, after all she is plastic!

What is attainable is a personal fashion style that rocks. Size and shape have nothing to do with a fashion diva; a stylish wardrobe is what matters. There is a lot of talk in fashion circles about out dated clothes and how you need to rid/donate old clothes. I don’t agree with that rational, fashion is cyclic, what goes out comes right back in (retro, 60s, vintage, etc.). Unless the garment has lost it’s mojo (yeah baby!) there is no sensible reason to part with it expect to shop more and line the pockets of the retail stores. I still wear jeans that are over 7 years old, they are frayed, comfortable and Über cool paired with a funky tee, aviators and junk jewellery.

What I will recommend is that you discard ill-fitting clothes. Even if you are a size 4, if you wear a size 3 you are going to end up with a muffin top. Wear your size, don’t appeal to your vanity and squeeze into a smaller size, it doesn’t flatter your body. Same with intimates, make sure that your underwear is the right size, the right fit, tight garments over time can leave permanent groves and fat gets deposited around it creating unsightly bulges. Love your body, there is nothing more sensual that wearing clothes that are comfortable, stylish and flatter your body.

English: Muffin top (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As a plus size, a figure-hugging outfit is not desirable unless you are extremely well toned or are comfortable wearing a total body contour compression garment. Decide on what you would like to focus on, many woman find wide necked garments flattering.

Wearing a delicate lace cardigan over a dress gives a romantic touch. Tops with detailing that are loose fitting and styled with chunky jewellery creates an extremely fashionable look.

There is enough information floating around regarding face shapes and what hairstyles suit best. Here is a different perspective, from someone who has experimented with knee length, to short crops and everything in between. I have had my hair permed, straightened, coloured orange, red, brown, and purple. Trust me when I tell you that I have learned a thing or two regarding hairstyles.

Hair Truth #1:
Don’t copy a celebrity or a friend with a great hairdo. Their hairstyle looks best on THEM, copy them only if you are the same face shape, size, personality and most importantly the same hair type as them.
That is the sad truth that even some hair stylists don’t tell you, each “look” can be carried only by a particular hair type, not to mention other factors like, quantity and texture.
Irrespective what any hair expert has told you, every hair is unique, for example limp hair. Hair that is limp might be so just because it’s too long; the weight drags it. Cut the same limp hair shorter and you might notice a bounce or a natural wave, it will even look a lot healthier. If you have (I envy you, if you do) a full head of limp hair it will behave very differently from someone who has scanty hair that is also limp.
Factors like pregnancy, medication, illness, the kind of stress and strain (colouring, blow-drying, straightening, perming etc.) also affect you hair condition and will change with altering the factors that affect them. Example: eating healthy, going off a particular medication, post pregnancy etc.

Hair Truth #2:
Each person has a unique hair cycle and hair length. Each strand of hair has a life cycle; it grows a certain length and then falls off. Pregnancy and some medication that alter your hormonal levels can change this cycle. Hormonal changes in pregnancy tend to extend the life cycle of hair, meaning they tend to live longer, giving an appearance of a thicker head of hair. Post delivery, the hormones are back to normal and all that extended life is abruptly cut short, resulting in massive hair loss.
Find out your natural length of hair, mine is until my knees but I have a friend whose hair never grows beyond her shoulder. Why is this important? Because it will help you choose your hairstyle, for example if you have shoulder length hair you might want to consider going in for extensions if you love that romantic tousled look.

Hair Truth #3:
There is no prefect hairstyle that you can roll out of bed and still look glam. Everyone has bad hair days and then some really bad hair days. If you choose a style that is closest to your natural style (poker straight or curly), chances are you will spend less time trying to get it to behave the way you want it to.
There are a lot of factors that affect hairstyles, apart form the above points, weather also affects you hairstyle. Humidity kills any blow dry or styling like curling or straightening, high temperatures makes you sweat and depending on how much your scalp sweats (yes, you have sweat glands on your scalp) you can find your hair turning greasy, ruining you look. Intense sunlight can even bleach your hair. Living in a dusty or polluted environment can also turn your hair dry, brittle and lack lustre. Basically the dust/pollutants stick to your hair, the more you condition your hair the more it sticks! Drive with the windows down for an hour and feel your hair; you’ll know what I mean.

The fundamental truth to a good hairstyle is to know your hair type, which can change depending on diet, physical condition and environment. When I had orange hair, I found it amusing how my ‘look’ changed when I was in broad daylight (looked like my head was on fire-absolutely loved it!) as opposed to when I was indoors. It changed tone depending on what I wore and the backdrop, I stayed away from orange walls and green shirts! I even had to change my makeup, had to go with one that had less orange pigments in it. I had to trim my thick black eyebrows very thin, etc.

The bottom line is, you need to experiment and find a style that is convenient to your lifestyle, flatters you body shape and suits you hair type. Yes, your body shape contributes greatly to your hair style, which might seem odd, since you only focus on your head. The truth is, your hairstyle can take years off your face and kilos of your waist, IF chosen correctly and the inverse is also true.
Personally, with my style experiments I found that long, slightly curled locks that fell across my face and covered most of my shoulders and back, gave me a slimmer look. As I was 90 kilos when pregnant, the soft curls that fell across my shoulders took the focus away from my bugle and centred it on shiny, dark curls. For a more styled look, I would straighten my hair and let it fall across my face, creating an illusion of slimming length, hiding my double chin and puffy face. Here are few photos, to illustrate, let me know if it worked or didn’t.

English: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, on her first royal tour, visiting Ottawa for Canada Day celebrations. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The fashion world is aghast at her highness; the future queen recycles her wardrobe! They call it a fashion Faux Pas.

I rise to her defence, after all we both are bargain hunters, but she had the good fortune to live near a second-hand designer wear store. Since becoming the Duchess of Cambridge she hasn’t frequented her favourite bargain shop but she does repeat her wardrobe, and why shouldn’t she? I think we need more practical public figures like her to make popular (a fashion revolution) the idea that clothes should be worn to express our individuality and not the other way around where we serve as mannequins for the ever-mighty garment.

I still carry pieces form five years back that I cannot seem to part with because I consider it so essential to my personal style. I can imagine the horror of wearing a gorgeous garment just once and then having to donate it to someone. I love wearing beautiful garments, which to me are like works of art, for the sheer joy of feeling beautiful in them. The feel of the garment, the fall of the fabric, the cut, the form… pure fashion climax!

Talking of fashion Faux pas, isn’t it hilarious that every celebrity who has been accused of it was always wearing, wait for it, a designer label? The red carpet is where the stars strut their stuff and the fashion critiques stand there deciding who is a fashionsta and who is a fashion disaster. Personally, I think a true fashionsta is someone who has a personality so bright that it outshines whatever they are wearing and all you end up noticing is her infections smile, the heart warming laughter, her amazing personality or her kind heart. Anything short of that and you have reduced yourself to a mannequin, a clothes rack, a clothes hanger in the cupboard.

A woman is a lot more than a showcase for the latest rend, she is mystery, intrigue, adventure, mischief, love and life all rolled into one. Let’s not degrade ourselves into labels, come on women; it’s time for a fashion revolution. Lead on Kate!

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Care for some light reading?: Musings of Antonia Rapheal

Tuesday, 20th February 2018 Time is an unstable commodity, elusive, distracting, and chimeric almost! Almost is more to its fantastical elusive attribute than its certainty. I know that many if not all of the extremely few who do read this will scratch their heads. I have been known; to the unfortunate few who regard me […]

I realized the greatest truth in the biggest lie touted in today’s world, Think different, be innovative. What they, the narrators of the world trends, are actually telling you is that we are bored of the same plot lines, impress us but don’t get too different lest we lose the tethers that still determine our identities. For what would society be if in a split second they could let go of all the walls that enclosed their lives and actually stepped out into the Free world of unregulated creativity?

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